


Sky-high for you

by HopeSilverheart



Series: Loving Em at 2AM [81]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Airplanes, Alternate Universe - Human, Background Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood, Boys In Love, Clary just wants the best for her best friend, F/F, First Meetings, Fluff, Humor, Jace Wayland is a Lightwood, M/M, Madzie being cute & curious, Matchmaking of sorts, Meet-Cute, Oblivious Jace Wayland, Oblivious Simon Lewis, POV Clary Fray, POV Outsider, little to no plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:13:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25981900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HopeSilverheart/pseuds/HopeSilverheart
Summary: Standing there, smiling at Simon smugly and bending down to take the seat next to her best friend, was none other than Jace Lightwood. She had only seen the blond man in pictures, since he hadn’t been in New York the first three times Clary had gone to visit Isabelle, but she would have recognised that face anywhere. Now her best friend was crushing on the blond man hard and Clary had no idea how to tell him that they would be staying with him for the next week or so.“Simon,” she whispered urgently, groaning when the brunet completely ignored her in favour of smiling at Jace and greeting him a little too enthusiastically to be purely platonic. God, her best friend was going to make a fool out of himself in front of a man Isabelle regularly described as ‘a player. A kind player, but still a player.’Or: Clary watches her best friend's and Jace's love story unfold in the airplane seats ahead of hers.
Relationships: Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Jace Wayland
Series: Loving Em at 2AM [81]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1764400
Kudos: 108





	Sky-high for you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thatnerdemryn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatnerdemryn/gifts).



Clary hated morning flights. She hated having to wake up early just to get to the airport and wait around for who knew how long, and she hated how she would always manage to find herself sitting behind a crying child. So when she and Simon boarded their plane to Denver at 7 in the morning, she was ready to go right back to sleep.

Obviously, the world didn’t agree.

“I’m so sorry to bother you,” an unfamiliar voice said to Clary and Simon’s right. “I know you’re probably flying together and I hate to ask this of you, but there was a mix-up with our seats. I thought my daughter and I had seats next to each other, but one of them seems to be for the row just ahead… I’m terribly sorry to ask you if it’s possible to move, but-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Simon smiled, ever the gentleman. Clary rolled her eyes at him before sending him a pleading glance, but she knew it was a lost cause. “I’m more than happy to move up a row. Which one’s yours?”

Her friend barely mouthed an ‘I’m sorry’ in her direction before moving away from Clary and letting a little girl no older than six sit in his place. At least she didn’t seem to be in a fussy or talkative mood, because Clary had _very_ little patience for people this early in the morning, no matter how young and adorable they were.

“I’m Madzie,” the little girl said softly after a few seconds of silence, glancing up at her mother and receiving an approving smile for her efforts. “Who are you?”

“I’m Clary,” she answered, hoping beyond hope that their conversation wouldn’t get any deeper than that.

Clary loved kids, she really did, but there was no way she was going to maintain a conversation with a girl barely past toddlerhood for three hours. Even she had her limits, and this crossed at least five of them. Fortunately, she didn’t think the mother was the kind to let her child chatter on to a stranger for hours at a time.

“We can still talk, you know?” Simon pointed out, leaning over the back of his fic and smiling at her winningly. “I know it’s not the most ideal position, but at least we helped a mother and daughter in need, right?”

“Correction: _you_ helped a mother and daughter in need, and I am now the one who has to deal with the consequences of your good Samaritan tendencies,” Clary whispered furiously, pointedly not looking in Madzie’s direction. “I hope you end up stuck next to a horrible, _horrible_ person, Lewis.”

“Oh come on, you love kids!” Simon huffed, winking at Madzie charmingly. “And kids usually love you. I know you wanted to sleep, but the flight is three hours long. How much do think a child could possibly have to say?”

“You underestimate children’s ability to mention just about anything to avoid silence,” Clary hissed. “Seriously, I just wanted to sleep. Why couldn’t you have volunteered _me_ to switch seats with the nice lady and her kid? That way you could have had a wonderful time colouring and talking to her.”

“But then you wouldn’t have the window seat,” Simon smirked. “Admit it, Fray, there was no other way for us to get out of this looking good whilst also being somewhat satisfied with our seat placements.”

Clary didn’t even deign that with an answer, instead deciding to dig through her bag in search of her favourite pencils and hoping Madzie had her own. As much as she loved her art supplies, she also knew she wouldn’t be able to say no to the little girl’s innocent eyes if she asked for extra colours.

She had looked down for barely more than three seconds and yet, when she looked up, the situation in front of her had changed dramatically. Because standing there, smiling at Simon smugly and bending down to take the seat next to her best friend, was none other than Jace Lightwood.

She had only seen the blond man in pictures, since he hadn’t been in New York the first three times Clary had gone to visit Isabelle, but she would have recognised that face anywhere. She knew she was biased, but she had always thought Isabelle and Alec were far more attractive than him, no matter how generically pretty his face was.

Simon, on the other hand, was staring at Jace like he was a divine being who had been sent on earth just for him, and Clary knew they were in trouble. She wasn’t sure why she had never shown pictures of Jace to Simon, but now her best friend was crushing on the blond man _hard_ and Clary had no idea how to tell him that they would be staying with him for the next week or so.

“ _Simon_ ,” she whispered urgently, groaning when the brunet completely ignored her in favour of smiling at Jace and greeting him a little too enthusiastically to be purely platonic. God, her best friend was going to make a fool out of himself in front of a man Isabelle regularly described as ‘a player. A kind player, but still a player.’

Clary knew how fast Simon could get attached to people he was interested in, and there was no way she was going to let him do that with Jace, especially since she didn’t want to deal with the inevitable awkwardness that would arise when the two of them were forced to share a room. God, why did Jace and Isabelle have to be roommates?

Before she could say anything to her best friend, however, the strangest thing happened. Simon laughed, said something slightly too softly for Clary to hear, and the infamous Jace Lightwood _blushed_. His gaze softened, he wrung his hands together, and his cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink.

Because for some reason, Jace apparently seemed to be just as interested in Simon as Simon was in him. Not that Simon wasn’t a catch, because he absolutely was, but people like Jace usually tended to go for people as confident and bold as them, not nerdy-looking guys like Simon.

“I’m actually headed back to New York after a week spent skiing with my cousins,” Jace said with a fond smile. “I don’t get to see them often, but they’re the best. My sister wanted to come with me, but she ended up having work obligations and had to cancel last minute.”

“That sucks,” Simon said, patting – _patting_ – Jace’s shoulder reassuringly. Clary almost face-palmed on the spot. Sometimes, she wondered how her best friend managed to get dates, given the fact that his first instinct was to _pat_ the people he was attracted to on the shoulder. “I’ve actually only ever been to New York once, so I’m looking forward to seeing the different spots in the city.”

“I could show you around, depending on where you’re staying,” Jace said, looking far more confident now that they were back in ‘flirting’ territory. “I don’t claim to know all of New York City, but I’ve lived there my whole life so I _do_ know a few nice places.”

Simon opened his mouth only to close it, clearly unable to think of anything to say, and Clary counted to ten before kicking his seat _hard_ , hoping to kick-start her best friend’s brain. It took him a second longer, but he eventually cleared his mind enough to actually remember how to speak.

“That would be cool,” he grinned, and this time Clary _did_ face-palm.

Before she could hear what Jace had to say to her best friend’s remarkably idiotic statement, Madzie tapped her arm softly, bringing Clary’s attention back down to the little girl. Part of her was glad she could turn away from the conversational train-wreck happening in front of them, but another – bigger – part of her just wanted to get back to the romantic tragedy her best friend was living through.

“Do you know who your best friend is talking to?” Madzie whisper-shouted, looking vaguely worried for Simon. “Because my mom says we shouldn’t talk to strangers.”

“Your mom is very right,” Clary answered as quietly as she could, cursing the background noises covering their discussion up as the plane started moving. “You shouldn’t talk to strangers on the street. But you’re talking to me now, aren’t you? Simon is doing the same thing with _his_ neighbour.”

“It’s not the same thing,” Madzie frowned, trudging on before Clary could ask why, exactly, it wasn’t the same thing. “You look nice and pretty. The man next to Mister Simon keeps frowning and scowling and turning red.”

“You have some wonderful vocabulary words right there, little one,” Clary chuckled, glancing over at her best friend and Jace. Just as Madzie had announced, the blond man was frowning in Simon’s direction, although the expression looked more adorably confused than anything else. “But if it makes you feel any better, I _do_ know the man he’s talking to. His name is Jace and he’s my girlfriend’s brother. I’ve never met him before, but Isabelle thinks he’s very nice most of the time. I’m sure he and Simon will be just fine.”

Madzie still looked somewhat dubious, but she went back to the pictured book in front of her fairly fast, leaving Clary to focus on Simon and Jace again.

Somewhere during the two minutes she had looked away, the two men had leaned in closer to each other. If Clary still knew how to read her best friend’s face – and she did – she would guess that he was overplaying his fear of planes so Jace would hold his hand during take-off. Or something along those lines. It wasn’t like Clary could hear them over the sound of the plane’s engine as it prepared to take-off, sending them hurtling down the runway.

Just as predicted, Jace immediately took Simon’s hand, smiling shyly at the brunet and completely ruining the idea of him Clary had created inside her mind. Really, how was it that a man like Jace, who Isabelle had described as incapable of keeping it in his pants, could be so fucking sweet? It didn’t make sense, and Clary would have to double-check with her girlfriend to make sure Simon wasn’t in danger of getting his heart broken.

After all, her best friend fell fast and he fell _hard_ , and Clary had watched him go through too many break-ups to let Jace stomp all over Simon’s heart like it was nothing. However, she wasn’t cruel enough to ruin their moment with her unwanted comments, so she just sat and stared as they took flight and Simon gripped onto Jace for dear life.

She had to admit they were cute. Not as cute as Isabelle and her, but cute enough. They would make a lovely blond-brunet couple, and if they acted so smitten and interested on every date they went on, Clary didn’t doubt that they’d be in a committed relationship by the end of their trip to New York.

That was if neither of them minded long-distance. Simon had always said that Clary was insane for dating someone who lived halfway across the country from them, but she had a feeling he was going to change his tune sooner rather than later.

“Do all strangers hold hands like that?” Madzie asked confusedly once their plane was safely up in the sky, overlooking the clouds. “Because mom says strangers rarely hold hands if they’re not in love, and I don’t think Mister Simon can be in love with someone he just met. Elsa said so.”

“Ah yes, well Elsa made some good points,” Clary admitted, nodding to show the little girl she understood what they were talking about. “However, Jace isn’t anything like Hans, and Simon isn’t in love with him. They’re just… getting to know each other a little bit better.”

“Would you hold _my_ hand if we got to know each other better?” Madzie asked, crossing her arms over her chest as though she knew exactly what Clary’s answer would be. The redhead hadn’t even known six-year-olds could be that sassy.

“Fine, they’re holding hands because they find each other pretty and wouldn’t mind kissing,” Clary hissed, hoping the girl’s mom wasn’t listening to their conversation. The last thing she wanted to do was have to explain why she was telling Madzie about two grown men’s love lives when she barely even knew the kid. She had a feeling _that_ discussion wouldn’t go over well.

“Then why don’t they just kiss?” Madzie questioned her, frowning at Jace and Simon like she couldn’t quite understand what they were trying to achieve. The two of them were still holding hands, looking shy about it even as Jace boasted about some sort of sports team he was on. “Is it because boys are weird? Mom always tells me that when boys do weird things, it’s because they ‘can’t help themselves.’ Is that why?”

Clary sighed, looking over at Simon and pleading for patience when he leaned in to whisper something in Jace’s ear. Madzie’s eyes went comically wide at the movement, and the redhead knew she was in for an entire flight of boy-related questions.

She wondered if it was too late to tell the little girl that she only dated girls and therefore had no idea how people like Jace and Simon – _men_ – operated. One glance at Madzie and her inquisitive, confused features told her that yes, it was too late.

Simon had better pray that things between Jace and him worked out, because Clary refused to have spent an entire flight answering questions about a relationship that ended in heartbreak.

* * *

Clary had been planning on accosting either Simon or Jace when the other went on a bathroom break. She really had.

The thing was, it was hard to give them a heads’ up about their flight neighbour’s identity when neither of them got up. Clary had to take _two_ separate bathroom breaks, but neither man got up. Either they hadn’t had anything to drink all morning – which she knew wasn’t true, because Simon had had two cups of coffee – or they were really _that_ into each other.

No matter the reason, their reluctance to leave each other’s sides meant that Clary didn’t have a chance to tell them about the living space they would be sharing that week. She even tried slipping a note underneath Simon’s seat but, as Madzie very wisely pointed out, there was no point in slipping a note to someone who didn’t know to look for it.

“So they’re going to have to share a bed?” Madzie frowned as the flight attendants told them to ready themselves for landing. “Even though they just met each other? My mom doesn’t even let me share a bed with Max yet, and I’ve known him for four _months_.”

“Your mom is a very smart woman,” Clary chuckled, sharing a secret smile with Catarina.

The two of them had gotten to talking when Madzie had finally succumbed to the vestiges of sleep and left Clary alone with the older woman. Catarina, who had introduced herself as soon as her daughter had stopped speaking, was a nurse who had wanted to take Madzie on a surprise ski trip and was now heading back home to her empty apartment and her group of overenthusiastic godparents.

She was kind, funny, and it was easy to see where Madzie got all her enthusiasm from. Clary hadn’t even hesitated before giving Catarina her number, telling her that she would be in New York for at least another week – probably more, if she was being honest with herself. Madzie was slightly exhausting, but she was also smart and witty and a blast to spend time with, and Clary would love to introduce Isabelle to the little girl.

She had ended up deciding that, even if Jace and Simon didn’t work out, the flight would have been worth it just for the two friends she had made along the way. Not that she thought Jace and Simon would cause any issues, since the two of them had slowly but surely drifted closer to each other until Simon was pressed against Jace, his head resting on the blond’s shoulder.

If Clary hadn’t known them, she would have assumed they were a couple. _That_ was how cute and comfortable they were with each other after a few hours. Clary didn’t know what either of them had done to deserve such luck in life, but she seriously needed to have a conversation with Isabelle about her brother. There was no way the guy was _that_ perfect for Simon.

“Simon and Jace aren’t exactly the same as you and Max, sweetheart,” Catarina explained patiently as her daughter continued staring suspiciously at the two men. “They have to share a bed because there’s no other bed around. Besides, the only reason I don’t let you and Max share is because your bed is far too small for two people and you would only end up complaining about it.”

“And I can promise you that sleeping in the same bed as a boy isn’t all that fun,” Clary whispered conspiratorially. “Believe me, I’d much rather sleep in the same bed as Isabelle.”

“That’s because you love her,” Madzie rolled her eyes, sounding far too wise for her age. “Mom told me that people who love each other sleep in the same bed. So do Simon and Jace love each other or not?”

She was cute, Clary reminded herself as she took a deep breath. She was a very cute kid, even though it was the tenth time she had asked Clary that exact question. It wasn’t like she was doing it on purpose; she probably just wanted to make sure things hadn’t changed since the last time she had asked. Still, the question was starting to get a _little_ old.

“No, Madzie, they don’t love each other,” she repeated calmly. “But they both think that they _could_ love each other at some point. They’re sharing a bed because the only other option is the couch, and no one really wants to sleep on the couch. But if either of them is uncomfortable with sleeping in the same bed, they’ll definitely go sleep on the sofa.”

“Alright,” Madzie shrugged, dismissing Clary’s answer the same way she had the past seven times. The kid was lucky she was cute. “I don’t like it when the plane lands.”

That was at least one thing they agreed on. As much as Clary loved flying, she had to admit there was something about landing that set her on edge and made her grip her seat handles just a little bit tighter. She wasn’t afraid, per say, but she definitely didn’t feel completely safe.

Clearly, neither did Simon and Jace, because the two of them were clinging onto each other as though they would die if they let go. It should have made Clary roll her eyes, but after three hours of watching the two of them moon over each other and giggle at the slightest smile, she couldn’t have cared less about their little exchange.

It was sweet, it was innocent, and as long as they were both okay with it even when they found out about their sleeping arrangements for the week, she would gladly encourage it. Right after she had that conversation with Isabelle about her player brother who apparently wasn’t such a player when it came to kind brunets with glasses and strange tastes in movies and music.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have officially landed. Welcome to New York City,” the pilot announced through the speakers.

Next to Clary, Madzie started bouncing up and down in excitement as her mother tried to get her to settle enough to grab all their belongings. In front of her, however, Jace and Simon were looking particularly forlorn, shooting each other nervous glances. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that they were trying to figure out what to do next, and Clary knew it was her time to work her magic.

(If by magic, one meant breaking the news she had been aware of all along.)

She waited until the passengers at the front of the plane had started leaving the aircraft to tap Simon’s shoulder and send him the most innocent glance she could muster. To her right, Madzie snickered madly and Catarina let out a soft snort, only stopping when Clary turned exasperated eyes on them.

“What’s up, Fray?” Simon asked, clearly trying very hard not to look back at Jace. It was a little bit pathetic, honestly, no matter how romantic Clary found it. “Do we have to hurry? Because as much as I can’t wait to meet your girlfriend, I was kind of thinking that-”

“I couldn’t care less about how fast the two of you walk to the exit,” Clary rolled her eyes. “If I get impatient, I’ll just jog ahead and let you both catch up with me later. That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. I just thought you should know who you’ve been speaking with for the past three and a half hours.”

“What are you talking about?” Simon furrowed his brows, letting himself glance back at Jace and looking far too smitten for Clary’s tastes. God, and here she had thought she was the only one to fall for people faster than she could blink. “This is Jace, and I’m pretty sure I know him better than you do.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Clary agreed easily. “However, _I’m_ pretty sure that he knows me better than you think he might.”

As if on cue, Jace turned around and gaped widely as he caught sight of Clary and Simon talking to each other casually. She had no idea whether he had made the connection between Simon and Clary’s best friend who was spending the week with them yet, but she couldn’t wait for that epiphany to strike him.

“ _Clary_? Clary Fray?” The blond man asked, standing up and extending a hand for her to shake. The gesture felt a bit weird, given the fact that Clary had been all but spying on him and Simon for the past few hours, but she was never one to turn down niceties. “How did I not- Have you been there the whole time? I could have sworn the only people behind me were a mother and daughter.”

“That’s us,” Catarina waved, smirking amusedly at Jace. “And she _has_ been there the entire time. Not that you would have had a chance to notice her, since you were a little too preoccupied with the man to your left.”

Jace blushed furiously at that, pointedly ignoring his other neighbour’s exasperated sigh – Clary hadn’t even realised there was a third person on that row. Instead, he turned to Clary and sent her the most betrayed, confused look she had ever seen.

“Why didn’t you just say something?” He frowned, before seemingly remembering that he had originally turned because Simon had been talking to someone other than him. “Wait, you know Simon? Simon… Simon _Lewis_?”

“Yup, that’s me,” Simon confirmed, sending Clary a perplexed look as Jace stammered and looked around panickily, cursing softly when he realised their row still had a minute or so before they could leave the plane. “Am I supposed to know you? I feel like I would have remembered a name like Jace, and I definitely would have remembered a face like yours.”

“Jonathan,” Clary corrected, smiling slyly at Jace’s beet-red face. “Jonathan Lightwood is his actual name. Jace is just a nickname his sister gave him when they were younger. It stuck, and Jace is far too attached to the Lightwoods to take it back now, even though he’s an adult. Isabelle always said it was the sweetest thing he had ever done for them.”

It clicked for both of them at the same time. They stared at Clary for a few seconds longer, processing her words and the implication behind them before twisting around in unison, gaping at each other unattractively. Immediately, Catarina and Madzie burst into another round of giggles, Clary following them after a few moments of trying to hold her laughter back.

“Oh my god, Fray, you knew this entire time!” Simon squealed, burying his face in his hands and peeking at her with narrowed eyes. “I can’t believe you knew what was going on and didn’t try to give us a warning.”

“But I did,” Clary huffed out in between bursts of laughter. “I really did. The thing is you two never left each other’s sides, and I didn’t want to break the news to both of you at once. You clearly have something good going on, and I didn’t want to make things awkward for you, so I just left you alone. You have to admit you had a pretty decent flight, right?”

There was no way Simon could deny that, not after having all but cuddled up to Jace during the second half of their trip. He had even started rambling about his favourite things – particularly Star Wars and his ragtag band – which was the best way to know whether or not Simon was having a nice time. If he felt comfortable enough to talk about the things some people mocked him for, Clary knew to leave well enough alone.

“You guys are staying with us for the week,” Jace finally blurted out, looking like he wasn’t sure whether he was supposed to be happy or worried about Simon’s reaction. “Hell, Izzy said you were going to stay for longer than a week. And there are only two beds in our apartment, which means either you’re going to have to share with Clary, or-”

“If you think I’m sleeping with anyone other than my girlfriend during our stay here, you are absolutely delusional,” Clary snorted. “I haven’t seen her in person in over five months and I’ll be damned if I let your romantic tension get in the way of my time with the woman I love.”

“So we’re going to have to share?” Simon breathed out, blushing darkly as Jace sent him a semi-heated, semi-shy look. It shouldn’t have been so endearing to see, but Clary found herself tolerating the man more and more by the minute. “Yeah, that- That’s cool, right?”

“It’s cool for me if it’s cool for you,” Jace shrugged. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind sharing. You’re a cool guy, so I think it would be pretty neat.”

“Oh, for god’s sake,” Catarina choked out around her peals of silent laughter. “If you say the word cool one more time, I will make sure the two of you are locked into this plane until you figure things out. You both think sharing a bed would be more than ‘cool’, so go ahead and discuss. I’m going to take Madzie and Clary out of this airplane, and we’re going to find this amazing girlfriend I heard all about.”

“Find us when you’ve got your business sorted,” Clary winked, blowing her best friend a kiss as she sauntered out of the plain, Madzie’s hand clasped in one of her own.

“Do you think they’re going to kiss?” The little girl asked as they entered the airport and headed towards the baggage claim area. “Now that they know they can share a bed and see each other again?”

“I don’t think they’re going to kiss,” Clary answered honestly. There was no way her best friend would kiss a guy he had just met, no matter how well he got along with said guy. “But I _do_ think they’re going to hold hands again, talk some more, and maybe give each other’s numbers to spend time together in the future. They’re also definitely going to kiss later.”

“When they’re in bed?”

Catarina and Clary both choked on air at Madzie’s question, shooting each other a panicked glance and eventually settling on a distraction technique. It was all too easy to get Madzie hyped up about a game of ‘find the suitcase’, and it saved the two of them a whole lot of trouble and butchered explanations.

Five minutes later, Madzie had completed her task and came back with Jace and Simon in tow, chattering on and on about how cute the two men were. She urged them to talk more and decide whether they wanted to kiss in bed or not, and the group set towards the airport exit in a mixture of chuckles and red faces. Clary stared at her best friend, the man he was holding hands with, the new friend she had made, and the curious little girl who had charmed her, and she couldn’t help but think it had all been worth the early flight.

And when she got to run into Isabelle’s arms and kiss the hell out of her girlfriend before telling her the most extraordinary story about lucky meetings, she _knew_ it had been worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> Heya guys! Thank you so much for reading! Em had to take an early flight this morning and ended up behind a duo who would have definitely been cute together, so I decided to adapt it to Jimon as my gift to her for the day <3 I hope you all enjoyed this little moment of Jimon sweetness and of Clary content. As always, these fics are completely unedited and unbeta'ed. 
> 
> Love, Junie. 
> 
> (find me on [tumblr](https://hopesilverheart.tumblr.com/))


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